The Fun they Had
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I. Answer these questions in a few words or a couple of sentences each.
1. How old are Margie and Tommy?
2. What did Margie write in her diary?
3. Had Margie ever seen a book before?
4. What things about the book did she find strange?
5. What do you think a telebook is?
6. Where was Margie’s school? Did she have any classmates?
7. What subjects did Margie and Tommy learn?
Answer
1. Margie is eleven and Tommy is thirteen-year-old.
2. Margie wrote, “Today Tommy found a real book!”.
3. No, Margie had never seen a book before.
4. Margie found it strange that the words printed on a book stood still instead of moving the way they did on a screen. She also found it odd that the words on a page always remained the same as the first time they were read. Besides, the idea that someone would write a book about schools was itself strange for Margie.
5. A book that can be displayed on a screen is called telebook.
6. Margie’s school was in her home itself, right next to her bedroom. No, she did not have any classmates.
7. Margie and Tommy learned geography, history and arithmetic.
II. Answer the following with reference to the story.
1. “I wouldn’t throw it away.”
(i) Who says these words?
(ii) What does ‘it’ refer to?
(iii) What is it being compared with by the speaker?
Answer
(i) Tommy said these words.
(ii) 'It' refers to the television screen, on which you could read over a million books
(iii) Tommy is comparing the television screen to the real books in earlier times in which words were printed on paper. He thought that after reading such books, one would have to throw them away. However, he would never have to throw away his telebooks.
2. “Sure they had a teacher, but it wasn’t a regular teacher. It was a man.”
(i) Who does ‘they’ refer to?
(ii) What does ‘regular’ mean here?
(iii) What is it contrasted with?
Answer
(i) They refer to the students who studied in the old kind of schools centuries before the time the story is set in.
(ii) Here, 'regular' refers to the mechanical teachers that Tommy and Margie had.
(iii) The mechanical teacher is contrasted with the teacher of the earlier times, who was a human being.
III. Answer each of these questions in a short paragraph (about 30 words).
1. What kind of teachers did Margie and Tommy have?
Answer
Margie and Tommy had mechanical teachers. They were large and black and ugly and had large black screens on which all the lessons were shown and questions were asked. These mechanical teachers had a slot in which the students had to put their homework and test papers. They had to write their answers in a punch code and the mechanical teacher calculated the marks immediately.
2. Why did Margie’s mother send for the County Inspector?
Answer
Margie had been given many tests in geography by the mechanical teacher, but there was no improvement in her performance. It only kept getting worse. It is for this reason that Margie’s mother sent for the County Inspector to find out why this was happening.
3. What did he do?
Answer
The County Inspector gave Margie an apple and started working on the mechanical teacher. He took it apart and then checked it. Margie had hoped that the Inspector would not know how to put the mechanical teacher together again, but he managed to reassemble it. He slowed down the geography sector of the teacher because it was geared a little too quick for an average ten-year-old.
4. Why was Margie doing badly in geography? What did the County Inspector do to help her?
Answer
Margie was doing badly in geography because the geography sector of the mechanical teacher had been geared a little too quick. The County Inspector rightly told her that she could not be blamed for her poor performance.
The County Inspector slowed down the geography sector of the mechanical teacher to an average ten-year level. He also told Mrs. Jones that Margie's overall progress pattern was satisfactory.
5. What had once happened to Tommy’s teacher?
Answer
Once, The history sector of Tommy’s teacher had once blanked out completely.
6. Did Margie have regular days and hours for school? If so, why?
Answer
Yes, Margie had regular days and hours for school. This was because her mother believed that learning at regular hours helped little girls learn better. Her mechanical teacher was also on at the same time everyday except Saturday and Sunday.
7. How does Tommy describe the old kind of school?
Answer
Tommy described old kind of school as a special building where all kids studied together. There were hundreds of students studying and playing together. They used to shout and laugh together in an open yard.
8. How does he describe the old kind of teachers?
Answer
Tommy said that the old kind of teachers was men, who taught the students inside a special building. The teachers taught the children in groups and gave them homework and asked them questions.
IV. Answer each of these questions in two or three paragraphs (100 –150 words).
1. What are the main features of the mechanical teachers and the schoolrooms that Margie and Tommy have in the story?
Answer
Margie and Tommy had mechanical teachers. They had large black screens on which all the lessons were shown and questions were asked. They had a slot in which students had to put their homework and test papers. They had to write their answers in a punch code and the mechanical teacher calculated the marks immediately. Their schools were in their homes itself. They did not have any classmates. They learned geography, history and arithmetic. They had regular days and hours for school. Margie's school was right next to her bedroom. The mechanical teacher always turned on at the same time every day except Saturdays and Sundays because her mother said that little girls learned better when they learned at regular hours.
2. Why did Margie hate school? Why did she think the old kind of school must have been fun?
Answer
Margie hated school because it was not fun. A mechanical teacher used to teach her everyday at a fixed time. Recently, she had been doing badly in the geography tests that her mechanical teacher had been giving her. Her mother was not happy with the performance and sends for the County Inspector, she hopes that the inspector would take the mechanical teacher away. She is disappointed when the County Inspector manages to assemble all the parts of the mechanical teacher. The part that she hated the most was inserting the homework and test papers in the slot on the mechanical teacher. She did not like the fact that she had to write her answers in a punch code. She thought that the old kind of school must have been fun as she imagined all the kids from the entire neighbourhood coming together, laughing and shouting in the schoolyard. She imagined that they would sit together in the classroom and go home together at the end of the day. They would learn the same things and could help one another with the homework and talk about it. Also, the teachers were people. All these aspects made her believe that the old kind of school must have been fun.
3. Do you agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the story? Give reasons for your answer.
Answer
Yes, I agree schools today are more fun than the school in the story. In the story, there is no interaction among students regarding studies. Studying and answering questions seems to be a boring idea. Doing homework without anybody's help and writing them in a punch code would also be draining. Moreover, children develop a better understanding about each other and of their surroundings when they go to a school and interact with each other. It is a healthier way of learning.
Listening to teachers explaining lessons is always more interesting than reading the entire lesson on a mechanical computer. Also, if any student faces any problem with the subject or in homework, he can discuss it with the teacher and other kids. It is impossible to discuss problems and situations with a mechanical teacher that is only programmed to teach in a particular manner.
The excitement of waiting to know the marks scored in exams is greater when one is sitting in a classroom with other students. It does not have the same effect when the marks are calculated immediately after a test has been taken.
Finally, the friends that you make at school are most probably the best friends that you will ever make in your entire life. The various qualities that you learn in school like obedience, respect, kindness for others, sharing, taking part in school games, sports, and other activities are all a part of school education today. Therefore, schools today are more fun than the school in the story as they are more interactive. They promote a healthy environment for the students to study and learn.
Thinking about Language
1. Find the sentences in the lesson which have the adverbs given in the box below.
Awfully, sorrowfully, completely, loftily, carefully, differently, quickly, nonchalantly
Answer
1. They turned the pages, which were yellow and crinkly, and it was awfully funny to read words that stood still instead of moving the way they were supposed to − on a screen, you know.
The mechanical teacher had been giving her test after test in geography and she had been doing worse and worse until her mother had shaken her head sorrowfully and sent for the County Inspector.
They had once taken Tommy’s teacher away for nearly a month because the history sector had blanked out completely.
He added loftily, pronouncing the word carefully, “Centuries ago.”
“But my mother says a teacher has to be adjusted to fit the mind of each boy and girl it teaches and that each kid has to be taught differently.”
“I didn’t say I didn’t like it,” Margie said quickly.
“May be,” he said nonchalantly.
2. Now use these adverbs to fill in the blanks in the sentences below.
(i) The report must be read _____ so that performance can be improved.
(ii) At the interview, Sameer answered our questions _____ , shrugging his shoulders.
(iii) We all behave ______ when we are tired or hungry.
(iv) The teacher shook her head ____ when Ravi lied to her.
(v) I ____ forgot about it.
(vi) When I complimented Revathi on her success, she just smiled _____ and turned away.
(vii) The President of the Company is _____ busy and will not be able to meet you.
(viii) I finished my work ______ so that I could go out to play.
Answer
(i) The report must be read carefully so that performance can be improved.
(ii) At the interview, Sameer answered our questions loftily, shrugging his shoulders.
(iii) We all behave differently when we are tired or hungry.
(iv) The teacher shook her head sorrowfully when Ravi lied to her.
(v) I completely forgot about it.
(vi) When I complimented Revathi on her success, she just smiled nonchalantly and turned away.
(vii) The President of the Company is awfully busy and will not be able to meet you.
(viii) I finished my work quickly so that I could go out to play.
3. Make adverbs from these adjectives.
(i) angry _____
(ii) happy ____
(iii) merry_____
(iv) sleepy ____
(v) easy ____
(vi) noisy _____
(vii) tidy _____
(viii) gloomy ____
Answer
(i) Angrily
(ii) Happily
(iii) Merrily
(iv) Sleepily
(v) Easily
(vi) Noisily
(vii) Tidily
(viii) Gloomily
II. Complete the following conditional sentences. Use the correct form of the verb.
1. If I don’t go to Anu’s party tonight, ____
2. If you don’t telephone the hotel to order food, ____
3. Unless you promise to write back, I ____
4. If she doesn’t play any games, _____
5. Unless that little bird flies away quickly, the cat _____
Answer
1. If I don’t go to Anu’s party tonight, she will be angry.
2. If you don’t telephone the hotel to order food, you will miss your evening meal.
3. Unless you promise to write back, I will not write to you.
4. If she doesn’t play any games, she will become dull and lazy.
5. Unless that little bird flies away quickly, the cat will pounce on it.
Extract Based Questions (3 marks each)
Read the passage given below and answer the questions that follow.
Question 1:
“Today Tommy found a real book!”
It was a very old book. Margie’s grandfather once said that when he was a little boy his grandfather told him that there was a time when all stories were printed on paper. (SA-1,2014-15)
1. The old book was found by ………….
2. Margie was surprised to see the book because ……….
3. Pick out a word from the following which means ‘small’:
(a) old
(b) once
(c) little
(d) very
Answer:
1. Tommy
2. all the stories were printed on paper
3. Little
Question 2:
It was a very old book. Margie’s grandfather once said that when he was a little boy his grandfather told him that there was a time when all stories were printed on paper. They turned the pages, which were yellow and crinkly, and it was awfully funny to read words that stood still instead of moving the way they were supposed to-on a screen.
1. Why the pages of the book were yellow ?
2. Did Margie see the book for the first time ?
3. Trace a word from the passage that means ‘with many folds or lines’.(Board Term 1,2012, ELI-014)
Answer:
1. The pages of the book were yellow because the book was quite old.
2. Yes, Margie saw the book for the first time.
3. Crinkly.
Question 3:
Margie went into the schoolroom. It was right next to her bedroom and the mechanical teacher was on and waiting for her. It was always on at the same time every day except Saturday and Sunday because her mother said little girls learned better if they learned at regular hours.
1. Where was Margie’s schoolroom ?
2. Explain ‘mechanical teacher was on’.
3. Write the opposite of ‘regular’. (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-022)
Answer:
1. Margie’s school room was next to her bedroom.
2. Computer was on.
3. Irregular.
Question 4:
“Because it’s not our kind of school, stupid. This is the old kind of school that they had hundreds and hundreds of years ago.” He added loftily.
1. Who is ‘he’ in the above lines ?
2. “Our kind of school.” What kind of school they have ?
3. Trace the word from the extract that means “in a superior way”.(Board Term 1,2012, ELI-031)
Answer:
1. ‘He’ in the above lines is Tommy.
2. They have future classrooms with mechanical teachers.
3. Loftily.
Question 5:
Tommy looked at her with very superior eyes. “Because it’s not our kind of school, stupid. This is the old kind of school that they had hundreds and hundreds of years ago.” He added loftily.
1. Why did Tommy call Margie stupid ?
2. What does ‘they’ here refer to ?
3. Find the word which means “in a superior way”. (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-034)
Answer:
1. Tommy called Margie stupid because she was too ignorant.
2. ‘They’ here refers to the students of centuries ago.
3. Loftily.
Question 6:
Margie did so with a sigh. She was thinking about the old schools they had when her grandfather’s grandfather was a little boy. All the kids from the whole neighbourhoods came, laughing and shouting in the schoolyard, sitting together in the schoolroom going home together at the end of the day. They learned the same things, so that they could help one another with the home work and talk about it.
1. Which school is Margie thinking about in the above lines ?
2. What is the advantage of those old schools ?
3. Which word in the passage means “breathing out deeply” ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-036)
Answer:
1. Margie is thinking about the school of her grandfather’s grandfather when he was a little boy.
2. The advantage of the old school was that everyone used to learn the same thing and could help each other in the homework. The children could go and come together also.
3. Sigh
Short Answer Type Questions (2 marks each)
(About 30-40 words each)
Question 1:
How was the book that Tommy found different from his own books ? (SA-1,2014)
Answer:
The book that Tommy found was an old, real book which belonged to his grandfather’s grandfather. It had crinkly, yellow pages whereas, Tommy’s books were telebooks by mechanical teachers, computers.
Question 2:
What kind of book did Tommy show to Margie ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-013)
Answer:
The book that Tommy showed to Margie was an old, real book which belonged to his grandfather’s.
It had crinkly yellow pages, where all the stories were printed on paper and the words stood still.
Question 3:
Why did Margie hope that the County Inspector would take away her mechanical teacher ?(Board Term
1,2012, ELI-016)
Answer:
Margie hoped that the County Inspector would take away her mechanical teacher because she had performed poorly in all the geography tests and had developed a strong disliking for the school.
Question 4:
Tommy thought the old books were funny and a big waste. Why ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-017)
Answer:
Tommy thought that the old books were a waste because the words stood still and did not run. He also thought that they were a big waste because they could not be reused like the screen of their mechanical teacher.
Question 5:
What did County Inspector do to improve Margie’s performance ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-018)
Answer:
The County Inspector found that the geography sector had been geared too quick. He slowed it up to an average 10-years level. He found the overall pattern of Margie quite satisfactory.
Question 6:
What kind of teachers did Margie and Tommy have ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-019)
Answer:
Margie and Tommy had mechanical teachers, computer, and telebooks. Their school had. no separate building. They had robotic teachers showing lessons and testing papers. Their teachers were always on and kept waiting for them.
Question 7:
Why did Margie hate school ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-020)
Answer:
Margie hated school, which was a room in her house only, because her teacher was a mechanical one. It kept giving her test papers where answers had to be written as punch codes. The results were given instantaneously.
Question 8:
What differences do you find in present school and the school described in the lesson ‘The Fun They Had’ ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-021)
Answer:
In present day schools, students study together in a separate building and teachers are human beings whereas, in the lesson the school was at home and the teacher was mechanical.
Question 9:
How does Tommy describe the old kind of teachers ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-025)
Answer:
Earlier, the teachers were not mechanical teachers, they taught the children in a special building where all children went to learn. They asked questions and gave them home work.
Question 10:
Why did Margie find the book strange ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-026)
Answer:
The book had yellow and crinkly pages and the words standing still unlike moving on a screen. When they turned back to the pages read before, there were the same words on it when they read it the first time. All these things were strange for Margie.
Question 11:
Why did Margie’s mother send for the County Inspector ? What did he do ?
(Board Term 1,2012, ELI-028)
Answer:
Margie was not performing well in her geography tests. The County Inspector took the teacher apart and put it together again as its geography sector was geared a little too quick.
Long Answer Type Questions (4 marks each)
(About 80-100 words each)
Question 1:
In spite of all comforts and luxuries in today’s world, our grandparents still cherish their own time when life was quite tough. Give your own views regarding this in 80-100 words.(Board Term, Sept. 2013,9KK73AP)
Answer:
Our grand parents lived during the years of 1950s to 1970s. At that time life was very simple yet tough. They had time to explore the surroundings and the world. They had parks to play with less of pollution around them. Mechanical gadgets were there but were used only for necessary activities. There were rivers where they could go for picnics and treks without the fear of being getting any allergy. The school was more of a fun place where they met their friends. They studied but were not competing against each other. For them togetherness was important rather than competition.
In today’s world we are competiting against our friends. We have all the facilities of life but we do not have time for our family and friends. We like to play but on computers and play station rather than with our sibilings and friends.
Question 2:
How was Margie’s school different from the schools that existed hundreds of years ago ?(Board Term 1,2012, ELI-030)
Answer:
Margie’s school was at home. She had a mechanical teacher, telebooks, no other students were there in the class and work was fed in by the mechanical teacher by punch codes. Whereas, the old schools had proper buildings, many students, human teachers who gave homework and asked questions. Everyone learned the same things and books were of paper. So, it is clearly visible that Margie’s school was totally different from the schools that existed hundreds of years ago.
Question 3:
How is Margie’s school different from a normal school ? (Board Term 1,2012, ELI-038)
Answer:
Margie’s school had a room installed with a computer from which she used to learn the lessons. There were no teachers to teach die students. No homework was given to the students. The computers gave them tests and the results were given instantly. There was no one to do the corrections or solve their problems. There were no classmates even. So, Margie’s school was very different from a normal school.
Value Based Question(4 marks each)
Question 1:
‘Machines can’t replace human beings.’ Explain this in 80-100 words with reference to the Lesson ‘The Fun They Had’. [SA-1, DDE-2014]
OR
In context of the lesson ‘The Fun They Had’ do you think mechanical teachers or computer instructors cannot replace humans as teachers.
Answer:
A teacher not only has to teach and explain things but also has to understand the mindset of the students. A computer instructor will only be able to deliver the lesson but will not be able to understand the problems of the students. A teacher (human) emotionally connects to the students to make the child comfortable but this is not the case with a mechanical teacher. Teaching can be best done by a person because then only will they be able to pass on the correct values and lessons to the students.
Very Short Answer Questions
1. On what date did Margie make an entry in her diary about the real book?
Answer: She did so on 17 May 2157.
2. What did Tommy find?
Answer: He found a real book.
3. How old was Margie?
Answer: She was eleven years old.
4. How old was Tommy?
Answer: He was thirteen years old.
5. What was the real book, that Tommy found, about?
Answer: It was about ‘School’.
6. What did Margie hate?
Answer: She hated school.
7. What had the mechanical teacher been giving to Margie?
Answer: The mechanical teacher had been giving test after test to Margie in geography.
8. Why did Margie’s mother send for the County Inspector?
Answer: She sent for the County Inspector because Margie had been doing worse and worse in her geography tests.
9. Why did Margie hate slot most?
Answer: Margie hated slot most because she had to put homework and test papers in it.
10. What was wrong with the geography sector of Margie’s mechanical teacher?
Answer: The geography sector of Margie’s mechanical teacher was geared a little too quick.
11. What do you mean by a regular teacher?
Answer: It means the mechanical teacher that appears on the television screen at the fixed time.
12. What is the name of Margie’s mother?
Answer: Her name is Mrs Jones.
13. On which two days there came no mechanical teacher on the TN. screen?
Answer: On Saturday and Sunday.
14. What subject did Tommy learn?
Answer: He learnt history.
15. Name the writer of the lesson ‘The Fun They Had’.
Answer: Isaac Asimov.
Short Answer Type Questions
1. Who are Tommy and Margie? How old are they?
Answer: Tommy and Margie are students from the year 2157. They are neighbours and spend time together like children of their age usually do. Tommy is a thirteen-year-old boy and Margie is an eleven-year-old girl.
2. What did Margie write in her diary?
Answer: On 17 May 2157 Margie recorded in her diary the discovery of a real book by Tommy. It was a very old paper book with yellow and crinkly pages.
3. Where did Tommy find the book and in what condition?
Or
Describe the book that Tommy had found in the attic.
Answer: Tommy found a real book in the attic of his house. The pages had turned yellow and crinkly because it was at least two hundred years old. Moreover, it was all covered with dust as it had been lying in the attic for ages.
4. Had Margie ever seen a book before?
Answer: No, Margie had never seen a book before till she saw the one that Tommy had found in the attic of his house. She had only heard about books from her grandfather who himself had not seen any. He too had heard about a printed book from his own grandfather.
5. Did Margie like the printed book? Why/Why not?
Answer: Margie was so excited to know that Tommy had found a ‘real’ book which was unlike the on-screen books the two were used to reading, that she recorded the discovery in her diary. As she turned the yellow and crinkly pages of the book with Tommy, she found it awfully funny to read it. While Tommy found it a waste, Margie was fascinated by it and liked it.
6. What things about the book did Margie find strange?
Answer: Margie lived in an era of mechanical education with telebooks stored in a machine. So she found it strange that the words in the printed book remained fixed unlike the moving ones on her television screen.
7. “What a waste!” What is Tommy referring to as a ‘waste’? Is it really a waste?
Answer: Tommy thinks that the paper books with words printed and fixed on them are a waste. Once a book is read, it becomes useless and must be thrown away because it has the same content. Actually, printed books are not a waste. They can be read by many people over and over again and should be preserved for future generations.
8. What do you think a telebook is?
Answer: A telebook is a compact book in an electronic form. It is stored in a computer and can be read by scrolling its pages up, down or sideways on a screen.
9. How does Tommy find the telebooks of his own time to be better?
Answer: Tommy felt that his telebooks were better than the printed books of the ancient times because they could be stored on television and read again and again. They occupied very little space as compared to the printed books and need not be discarded once they had been read.
10. Where was Margie’s school? Did she have any classmates?
Answer: Margie’s school was inside the comfort of her house. It was just next to her bedroom. It was a customized school, set up exclusively for her according to her level and needs. No, she did not have any classmates.
11. Why had Margie started hating her school?
Answer: Margie never liked school. But recently her hatred had increased because of her poor performance in geography tests. Her mechanical teacher gave her one test after another and her performance went on becoming worse and worse.
12. Which part of her school did Margie hate the most?
Or
What did Margie hate the most about her school?
Answer: The part that Margie hated most was the slot where she had to put homework and test papers. She always had to write them in a punch code that she was made to learn at the tender age of six. Besides, the mechanical teacher calculated her marks in no time which left no scope for Margie to relax after submitting the assigned tasks.
13. What subjects did Tommy and Margie learn?
Answer: Tommy and Margie learned a lot of subjects like History, Geography, and Mathematics.
14. What kind of teachers did Margie and Tommy have?
Answer: Margie and Tommy had mechanical teachers. They were not real persons but televisions which had different subject sectors. These teachers were customized to the level of a student. In case of malfunction, they were disbanded and repaired.
15. Why did Margie’s mother send for the County Inspector?
Or
Why did Margie’s mother shook her head one day and send for the County Inspector?
Answer: Margie’s mother sent for the County Inspector because Margie had been performing poorly in Geography. The repeated fall in her daughter’s performance disappointed her. So, she decided to call a specialist, the County Inspector, who could locate the problem and correct it.
16. What views did Margie’s mother have about teachers and learning?
Answer: Margie’s mother was very particular about her child’s education and made sure that Margie attended her tele-school regularly and studied properly and punctually. She believed that a tele-teacher had to be adjusted to the mind of each student and that each student had to be taught differently. Whenever she noticed a snag in Margie’s tele-teacher, she sent for the County Inspector to get the snag removed so that Margie did not miss Out of her school and learning.
17. What was the County Inspector trained to do?
Answer: The County Inspector worked as a technical expert. He was trained to identify and rectify errors in the functioning of the system installed in the mechanical teachers.
18. What idea do you form of the County Inspector as a person?
Answer: The County Inspector was certainly a kind-hearted man. Instead of finding fault with Margie, he gave her an apple and told her mother that if Margie was not performing well, it was not her fault, but the fault of the mechanical teacher. He aligned the speed of the geography sector keeping in mind the level of the girl. Before leaving, he patted Margie on the head and expressed satisfaction at her performance.
19. Why was Margie doing badly in geography? What did the County Inspector do to help her?
Answer: Margie was doing badly because the speed of the geography sector had been fixed too fast for her level. The County Inspector slowed down the speed to suit the level of an average ten-year-old. As Margie was of eleven years, she was comfortable with the new level set by the County Inspector.
20. “Margie was disappointed,” says the author. Why was she disappointed?
Or
How did the County Inspector disappoint Margie?
Answer: Margie was disappointed because she hated school and hoped that her mechanical teacher would be taken away for repairs as Tommy’s teacher was once taken away for a month. But when the County Inspector promptly repaired and reset it at her home itself, she was unhappy
21. What had once happened to Tommy’s teacher?
Answer: Once, Tommy’s mechanical teacher had developed a fault and its history sector had blanked out absolutely. The teacher had to be taken away for repairs and it had taken a month to put it in order.
22. Did Margie have regular days and hours for school? If so, why?
Answer: Yes, Margie had regular days and hours for school. She studied from Monday to Friday at the same time every day. Although her school was a large black television screen installed in her own house, she had to attend it regularly. Her mother thought that young girls learnt things better if they studied them at regular hours.
23. How does Tommy describe the old kind of school?
Answer: Tommy describes the old school as a special building where all the children went to study together. The students of the same age-group learnt the same things which were taught by human teachers.
24. How does Tommy describe the old kind of teachers?
Answer: Tommy tells Margie that the teachers in olden times were not mechanical but real men. They taught various things to boys and girls, gave them homework and also asked them questions. The teachers went to a special building called the school where they taught the children in the classrooms.
25. How did Margie react when Tommy told her that twentieth-century schools had human teachers?
Or
Why did Margie remark, “How could a man be a teacher”?
Answer: Margie made this remark when she heard Tommy mention that children were taught by human teachers in the times gone by. She could not believe the truth of Tommy’s comment because she had not seen any human teacher; she was used to studying with the help of her mechanical tele-teacher only. Moreover, she believed that a human teacher could not match the mechanical teacher in intelligence and knowledge.
26. Who interrupts Margie and Tommy’s conversation? Why?
Answer: Margie and Tommy were lost in unraveling the exciting mystery of the ‘real’ book that the latter had found in his attic, when Margie’s mother interrupted them saying “Margie! School!” and she even suggested to Tommy that it was time for him to attend school, too.
27. When Margie went to her school, what did the teacher on the screen teach?
Answer: When Margie went to her school, which was a room next to her bedroom, the mechanical teacher taught an arithmetic lesson on the addition of proper fractions. It taught her how to add the fractions ½ and ¼.
28. Why couldn’t Margie concentrate on the Arithmetic lesson?
Answer: Margie could not concentrate on the arithmetic lesson because her mind was pre-occupied with the thoughts about the school that Tommy had just described her. She was awestruck to learn that children studied together and were taught by real persons in these old schools. She thought how much fun those students must have had while studying together.
29. Why did Margie think that children must have loved to go to school when her grandfather’s grandfather was a little boy?
Or
Why did Margie feel that children in old times had fun while studying in school?
Or
why does Margie feel that learning was fun in the schools of the past?
Answer: Margie attends a tele-school, which is just a machine in the room next to her bedroom and she studies alone unlike students of the schools in the bygone times. She feels that learning was more fun in those days because hundreds of children had the opportunity of congregating and studying together with the help of human teachers and printed books. Schools were huge buildings where a lot of activities could be carried out by students in groups. Compared to that, her present school is much too mechanical, boring, monotonous and demanding, and she hates it.
30. What was Tommy’s opinion about the ‘real book’?
Answer: Tommy found the ‘real book’ a waste as once read you, just throw it away. It did not seem interesting and useful. The words were fixed on it and not any other thing can be printed on it.
31. How does Tommy describe the old kind of teachers?
Answer: He says that the old teachers did not live in the house. They had a special building and all the kids went there. They gave homework to students. They were not mechanical teachers, but human beings.
32. Who was the Country Inspector? What was his work?
Answer: The country Inspector was the man who repaired the mechanical teacher. He adjusted the level of the teacher as per the child’s requirements and intelligence.
33. Why was Margie doing worse in geography? What did the County Inspector do to help her?
Answer: Margie had been doing worse in geography because the mechanical teacher was very fast in displaying the questionnaire. The County Inspector adjusted its speed up to an average ten-year level. Thus, the mechanical teacher’s speed was controlled appropriately. The County Inspector assured that the overall pattern of Margie’s progress was quite satisfactory.
34. Did Margie have regular days and hours for school? If so, why?
Answer: Yes, Margie had regular days and hours for school because her mother said little girls learned better if they learned at regular hours.
35. Why did Tommy pronounce the word ‘centuries ago’ carefully?
Answer: Tommy pronounced the word carefully because he wanted to lay stress on the fact that the school was very old and it was quite different from theirs.
36. What had once happened to Tommy’s teacher?
Answer: Once Tommy’s teacher was taken away for about a month because the history sector had blanked out completely.
37. What is the ‘slot’? Why does Margie hate it
Answer: ‘Slot’ was a space in the mechanical teacher where each student is to put his homework and test assignments for marking. Margie hates it the most because she has to work hard to punch code for answering homework.
38. Evaluate ‘The Fun They Had’ as a futuristic story.
Answer: The Fun They Had’ is a futuristic story. It tells us about the revolutionary changes that will come in the field of education in the 22nd century. Technology will replace the concept of old schools and printed books. Margie and Tommy are the students of the year 2157. They are taught in their bedrooms serving as virtual classrooms. A mechanical teacher will replace a human teacher. Computers and e-books will replace old printed books.
39. How will the e-books be different from the old books that existed centuries ago?
Answer: The very concept of ‘the books’ will change in the 22nd century. The e-books will replace old books. The books will not be printed on papers. The words will move on a TV/computer screen. The television screen may have more than a million books on it.
40. What did Margie’s mother think about the teacher’ and ‘the school’?
Answer: Margie’s mother thought that every child had a different intelligence and capacity to understand things. The mechanical teacher should be adjusted to fit the mind of each boy and girl it taught. Each kid had to be taught differently. She thought that little girls and boys would learn better if they learned at regular hours at the ‘school’.
41. Describe the characteristics of the old school? How did it influence Margie?
Answer: The old school had several characteristics — the children went to a big building. The man worked as a teacher and taught the boys and girls. The teacher gave them homework. He also asked them questions. They sat together and studied the same subject. In the old school, children studied and played together. It was quite opposite to the school that has been talked about in the chapter. Margie was very much influenced by the old school. In her class, she was busy thinking about the fun the children had at that time.
42. Will future schools be completely devoid of humans and human values? Give a reasoned answer.
Answer: Certainly, a revolutionary change will come in the field of education in the future. The mechanical teachers and tele-books will dominate the scene. Every student will be taught by the mechanical teacher according to his or her ability. However, the institution of schools will remain in one form or the other. Human teachers will not disappear altogether. Education will never be completely devoid of humans and human values.
43. Why did Tommy and Margie think the old book a wastage of resources?
Answer: Because they found the words in the old book not moving. The pages had turned yellow and crinkly. Moreover, the old book could not last long.
44. What difference did Margie’s mother find in the old school?
Answer: Margie’s mother was of the opinion that children should be taught according to their individual needs. But in the old school, the children of the same age group studied the same things.
Long Answer Type Questions
1. How did a chance discovery of a paper book leave Margie and Tommy awestruck?
Answer: Margie and Tommy are neighbourhood friends in the year 2157. It is an age of total automation, mechanization, digitalization and computerization. Children do not go to a school building and they are not taught by a human teacher. Instead, their teacher is a telling teacher, a computer like a machine that has millions of books. It can be customized according to the age and learning needs and abilities of individual students. Reading is done on a screen that displays movable text.
So, one day when Tommy finds an old, dusty paper book in the attic of his house, he shares the exciting news with his friend Margie and together they are awestruck, for they had hitherto never seen or heard about a book that had no screen but only fixed text on pages that had to be flipped with fingers.
As the duo kept reading the book further and further, their excitement kept growing. They were awestruck to discover that ancient schools were huge buildings where hundreds of children studied together with the same syllabus, the same subjects and carried out the same activities and tasks. They were taught by real human teachers with the help of real books. Margie believes that students those days must have had a lot of fun studying together.
2. What are the main features of the mechanical teachers and the schoolrooms that Margie and Tommy have in the story?
Answer: Tommy and Margie are young schools going children in the year 2157. Schools and teachers have an entirely different form from the ones in the twentieth century. Margie and Tommy’s school is not in a separate special building but in a room in their respective houses where the television or the mechanical teacher is placed. Each student has to sit and study alone with the help of the mechanical teacher. The ‘teacher’ assigns tests to the students and assesses their progress. The speed of the different subject sectors is fixed according to the age level of each student.
There is a special slot in the tele-teacher where students have to insert their homework. If the mechanical teacher develops any fault, there are engineers to repair it. Sometimes the fault may be a major one and it takes longer to repair it, as was the case when Tommy’s history teacher developed a snag. Thus, the mechanical teachers and schoolrooms of Tommy and Margie are fully computerized and are completely different from the present-day schools.
3. Why did Margie hate school? Why did she think the old kind of school must have been fun?
Answer: Margie hated school because it did not have any fun. Her schedule was too regimented and she had to study at a fixed time on all days of the week except Saturdays and Sundays. She did not have any classmates to study with and seek help from. Her mechanical teacher sometimes developed a snag and assigned the tests that were quite difficult for her. Constant failure to perform well in such tests was disappointing for her. There were times when she wanted a break, but the technical advancement of 2157 did not give her a chance. The County Inspector took just a little while to set right the Geography sector of her teacher.
She thought that the old kind of school must have been fun because unlike her school, the ancient schools were in special buildings where the students from the whole neighbourhood came laughing and playing. Students of the same level would be in the same room and were taught by human teachers. The students would sit together in the schoolroom, go home together, learn the same things, help one another with the homework and talk about it. Hence, schools in olden days did not restrain their students but gave them a chance to grow up together.
4. Do you agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the story? Give reasons for your answer.
Answer: Margie’s school, as described in the story, seems to be a boring place where learning is a mere task. In comparison, schools today are more fun. Students get a chance to come out of their homes and travel to reach school. On their way, they laugh, play and have so much fun. The schoolyard too is a great open place where students get a chance to interact informally with each other. They get an opportunity to share their experiences and help each other. Their learning schedule is also flexible and gives them enough time to have fun. They have so many extra-curricular activities which teach a lot of skills in a fun-filled way. Their teacher is a real person who makes them sit together and teaches them the same topic. In this way, they learn to adjust and adapt which helps them develop the values of tolerance and cooperation. Hence, Margie’s view that schools today are more fun than her school is totally justified.
5. Suppose you are Margie. Write a diary entry dated 17th May 2157 about Tommy’s real book that he found in his attic.
Answer:
Tuesday,
17th May 2157
10.00 p.m.
Dear Diary
It has been a wonderful day for me as I have seen a real, hard-bound printed paper book. In fact, Tommy found the book in the attic of his house when he was cleaning the cupboard of his grandfather. It consists of about 200 pages which have become yellow and crinkly with time. It is a strange experience to read the words fixed on its papers unlike the ones in my telebooks that keep moving as I scroll.
When I turn the page, I find the same words again. The book is about a school from olden times, about two centuries ago. Can you believe that in those times a school was not a room in one’s own house but a special building dedicated to the purpose of teaching and learning! The students of the same level studied the same things sitting together in the same classroom. It is really wonderful to think that the teachers were men and not machines. I really believe that it must have been great fun for children to go to such schools together, laughing, joking, playing, and teasing each other. How wonderful it must have been that the students helped each other with lessons as well! I wish I could travel back in time and study in one of those schools.
6. Why did Margie hate school? Why did she think the old kind of school must have been fun?
Answer: Margie hated school because she had a mechanical teacher. It was at her house. She was supposed to sit in that room alone to complete her homework or assignments. The part Margie hated the most was the slot where she had to put homework and test papers. She thought that the old schools must have been fun because the students used to sit together in the classroom. They enjoyed, laughed and shouted in the schoolyard, going home together at the end of the day. They learned the same things so that they could help one another with homework and talk about it. All the teachers were people. Children needed a company to enhance their skills. If they are isolated, they get depressed and dejected.
7. The old schools are considered fun by the modern generation. Explain.
Answer: The ancient schools consisted of Gurukuls in which the students stayed in the building with the guru. Then with the change of time Gurukuls changed into schools. Hence the teacher and the student have a formal relationship. In these schools, teachers are human beings and books are real ones made of paper. Now with times, the modern generation’s school replaced by e-text and computers. The future generation would envy when they come to know about the old system of education in which all the kids went to school together. They studied together, played together. They could have better innovative minds as they got a chance to discuss things with each other. The old system of education in which ‘man’ as a teacher could influence his students by the charisma of his personality. Future generation would utter what fun the schools were long ago.
8. Do you agree with Margie that schools today are more fun than the school in the story? Give reasons for your answer.
Answer: There is no doubt that today’s schools have more fun than the school discussed in the story. This school has nothing but a mechanical teacher with no emotions and sentiments. It does not have the ability to understand the psychology of a child. Moreover, it guides a pupil according to its adjusted modes. But today’s schools work for the overall development of a child. They are given training in leadership, sports, politics and science. They learn how to adapt themselves to the new surroundings and cope with strangers. The students sit and learn together forgetting their caste, colour and creed. These activities don’t give vent to the feelings of depression, alienation and segregation.
9. Will the existing schools and teachers become totally irrelevant in future ‘school’? Give a reasoned answer.
Answer: Naturally, schools that existed centuries ago will not be the same in the coming centuries. The system of education will be highly computerized and mechanical. The ‘school’ will have no separate building. Nor will they be taught the same thing together. The mechanical teacher will be a big TV screen, good for a million books. The mechanical teacher will be adjusted according to the age and capacity of the student. But it will be an exaggeration to say that everything about the old schools will disappear. Even the future schools can’t be completely devoid of the human angle. Perhaps the institution of the old schools and teachers will remain. Human involvement can’t disappear altogether.
10. Describe the characteristics of old schools. How did they arouse so much interest in Margie and Tommy?
Answer: The good old students reflected the charm and romance of their times. Every school had its own buildings. Students from different parts of the town went there for studies. All the students in a class were taught the same things. They received the same kinds of homework. Hence, students could help one another. The teachers were real human beings. The books were printed on paper.
There was an air of romance about the old schools. Margie’s interest was around about them. She got the relevant information about them from Tommy. In comparison to her mechanical teacher and her ‘school’, the old schools charmed Margie. She was fascinated by the way children went to their schools. They studied together. They were taught the same things. It was easier for them to help one another. Margie was rather envious of the fun the children had in old schools.
11. Can you imagine a school without teachers and books? Give your opinion on the basis of the lesson ‘The Fun They Had’.
Answer: No one can deny the role of modern technologies in our lives and in our studies. Nowadays education is changing but schools without teachers and without books are beyond imagination. Without teachers, teaching would not be good because no one would be there to explain and to teach as well. No student would like the environment, it would be like an office. Teachers are very important for education. Teachers not only teach us different subjects but they also teach us to live in discipline and to live together. Teachers resolve the student’s problem and doubt and if they aren’t in schools the students don’t study enough. As in the lesson Margie does not like her school, she finds it tedious as she does not have the opportunity to be with other students and to do every work together. Modern technologies can be taken as an aid to improve the standard of studies but the schools without books and teachers will never be preferred.
12. What is the role of a teacher in the life of a student? How is a human teacher better than a mechanical teacher?
Answer: Teachers play a very important role in the life of a student. They not only provide bookish knowledge but also inspire their students to live a meaningful and successful life. They burn themselves like a candle throughout their lives to remove the darkness and ignorance from their student’s life. This can be done by a human teacher only. A mechanical teacher can provide ample knowledge on various subjects but he/she can not boost up their students to do something distinguished. There is a single mechanical teacher having various sectors geared up according to the level of the child. There is no companion, no playground and no fun at all. The teaching is mechanical and monotonous. Thus the human teachers are better than the mechanical teachers in many ways. They know individually intellect of their students which helps them to guide them individually according to the mental level of students.
